Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,

For yesterday, because I know I'm a bad person: British accents, and analytical conversations of swearing in foreign languages.

And for today, Halloween, this wonderful shirt from Novel-T.com (they even have a cool name).

"Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter,

In there stepped a stately raven of the saintly days of yore;

Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he;

But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door--

Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door--

Perched, and sat, and nothing more."

-Edgar Allan Poe; "The Raven"

For those people whose heroes aren't on the field, but rather in the book or holding the pen. These other two shirts I really, really want as well.

"Tell all the Truth but tell it slant--

Success in Circuit lies

Too bright for our infirm Delight

The Truth's superb surprise

As Lightening to the Children eased

With explanation kind

The Truth must dazzle gradually

Or every man be blind--"

-Emily Dickinson; "Tell all the Truth but tell it slant"

"She is tolerable; but not handsome enough to tempt me; and I am no humor at present to give consequence to young ladies who are lighted by other men. You had better return to your partner and enjoy her smiles, for you are wasting your time with me."

"I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look, or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun."

-Jane Austen; Pride & Prejudice: Darcy speaking first to Bingley (vol. I, ch. iii), then to Lizzie (vol. III, ch. xviii)

m.

Check out more literary designs here.

All Hallow's...

Typically: "Eve."

This year, and hopefully all subsequent years: "Read."

Only a few days ago, the illustrious Neil Gaiman (yes, him again) proposed that there be a holiday that involved giving away books.

In only a matter of hours, hundreds, if not thousands of people had gotten on board. For this Halloween. And we're not just talking about the nerds who wear "Flash" t-shirts (Sheldon Cooper, raise your hand). No, we're talking about people like the editors at the Huffington Post and Stephen King.

Read more (pun intended, even though it's terrible) at http://www.allhallowsread.com. And then go find some scary books!

m.

Success!

I love this necklace by Moth House.

Which is good. You see the "win" and "giveaway" in the second image? Forget it, because, as of a few hours ago, I own it.

Chloe Scheffe, of itssymetrical.com, hosted a giveaway...and the loverly number generator decided it would be a good birthday present for me (it was the 27th Chloe's time when she drew).

Now I just need to figure out a way to get it halfway around the world.

m.

Check out more of Moth House's stuff here. Oh, and that beautiful photography? Yeah, that's Chloe too. Her blog is here, portfolio here, tumblr here, & flicker here.

Can you kind of tell I like this girl?

Happy Legality

I am now legal--in all ways--everywhere on the planet.

Now, turning 21 in the States is a big deal (uh, bar hopping, anyone? Or even being able to order a glass of Merlot, even though you've been drinking it since you were 18?). Turkey, not so much. I was legal five years ago.

But for this birthday, I don't want alcohol. Oh no. I want this cake.

I'd prefer some kind of chocolate cake (chocolate peanut butter would be my first choice), but really, with this design, I'd be okay with anything short of cardboard.

m.

Wonderful fantabulous cake I really, really want, and would probably marry the decorator if it ensured I'd get it found at (and they carry the blame for my drooling) http://www.forgetfoo.com/images/blog/van_gogh_cake.jpg

Warm, fuzzy lust.

Dear Gap:

Please have this sweatshirt in stock when I visit tomorrow. If you don't there will probably be tears.

Love,

M.

Fuzzy sweatshirt I want and can afford thanks to gap.com

Happy/Sad Diagram

I mean, how can you not love this diagram?

m.

Found here.

nirrimi

Sheer brilliance in an eighteen year old girl. Eighteen is only the number of years she's been breathing, though. Proof here.

Old photoshoot (March 2010), but still my favorite.

More here.

m.

All images courtesy of nirrimi, taken from http://weliveyoung.blogspot.com/2010/02/jesus-was-lonely-boy.html

Drool-worthy shelves, even if I do look like an idiot.

There are a few downsides to living in a dorm room halfway across the country from your own room, let alone in one halfway around the world.

The biggest one, of course, being the lack of cohesion in my books.

My favorites went away with me to school, and then that collection was added to by way of gifts, textbooks, Half-Price Books, the occasional B&N gift card, and the sale of a deceased prof's entire 9,000 tome library.

Some books got shlepped home, and others got dragged out, eventually resulting in me needing more bookshelves no matter where I am.

And then I decided to study halfway around the world and brought with me only two books: a short novel entitled Stonehenge, but only because my mom had just bought it for me and it's sick and wrong to only take one book anywhere. The second was Les Miserables.

Thank goodness for iBooks, that's all I have to say.

I have an excessive attachment to print, though, so when I saw this particular room belonging to (yep) a Mr. Gaiman, I was instantly smitten. It's like the Powell's of home libraries

I want a room like this. Actually, I would like several rooms like this. I would also like this selection at this moment.

m.

see more photos at http://blog.shelfari.com/ronbrinkmann/2009/08/gaimans-bookshelf-details.html Which is also where I stole the ones you just looked at.

Morpheus

He is my favorite of all the Greek gods.

While I do understand the necessity of praying to, say, Ceres for a good harvest, it has always been a mystery to me as to why Morpheus gets passed over so often. We're talking a day-to-day thing here, and I don't think I'm alone when I say a "good" nightmare can put me off for the rest of the day.

As per most Greek deities, even lesser ones, his lineage is disputed. Personally, I think it makes the most sense that, as the god of dreams, his father is Hypnos (sleep) and mother, Nyx (night).

For a lesser god, Morpheus has had a fair amount of attention. There are the traditional paintings, of course, but there are two people who have really launched him (sheez, he sounds like a movie star, doesn't he?) to a wider-known circle of obscurity:

Laurence Fishburne and Neil Gaiman.

I think it's a toss up as to who brought him into the spotlight more. The Matrix (first movie alone) grossed over 171 million, and simply googling "Morpheus" brings up far more photos of Fishburne's "hero" than Gaiman's.

On the other hand, Gaiman's Morpheus (also known as Dream, or rarely, the Sandman) is a thoroughly well-rounded character.

Acceptable, since he is the main character of ten graphic novels and a secondary one in...fifteen, maybe?

Don't snort (which you may be doing) at the "graphic novel" thing. I'm not a big fan, but these are gorgeous--writing and illustrations (done by different artists, so he's always a little to a lot different). In other words, don't snort.

And then go read them.

(Dream with Death, his sister)

I prefer Gaiman's Morpheus out of all of the different renditions I've seen, but I think that's only because he's the closest to matching the Morpheus in my head.

No, I don't believe in Greek mythology, but he's just been...sitting in the back of my head for years. A character I'm sure I'll get around to using someday.

But then there's Evan Shaner's take on Dream and Death, and this Dream I love for completely different reasons.

m.

First image, Morpheus, Phantasos and Iris, by Pierre-Narcisse Guérin, courtesy of http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morpheus_(mythology)

Second image (if you know the artist, or the title, I'll love you forever) from http://vovatia.wordpress.com/2010/09/18/hello-morpheus-i-think-im-going-down/

Typical Matrix promo shot, although better than most, since it lacks Keanu Reeves, http://rocksijenist.blogspot.com/

Dream and Death from Gaiman's most excellent Sandman series, volume I, http://www.totalfilm.com/features/7-films-that-must-be-saved-from-development-hell/page:5

Dream asking for Lucien (his librarian) in volume...three? I honestly have no idea. From http://forum.lostpedia.com/lostpedias-favorite-comic-characters-countdown-t41860.html?p=2054580

Best. Spoof. Ever. thanks to peanuts http://forbiddenplanet.co.uk/blog/2008/morpheus-you-blockhead/

Photos, I understand. The language, I do not.

I found these fantastic photos on a blog* earlier today, and fell in love with them. They're from a small mountain village in Japan.

In particular, I'd like the one of the barn to hang on my wall when I own a house, preferably in a large size.

Alas, they were shot with a point-and-shoot digital, which means I'm limited in size.

*Me, being honest: Gretchen, the author of said blog, is a friend of mine. She's in Japan for the semester, and the blog is about that**.

**Shameless plug: see said blog here.

m.

Photos taken by Gretchen Sager, and are totally her property. I stole them from her blog, http://intothelandoftherisingsun.blogspot.com/

Glasses

I really, really love this picture. It's just so flipping accurate.

I also love that "Hell's Angel" is "Angel del Infierno." That sounds so much better.

m.

image courtesy of http://weheartit.com/entry/28125

Avant garde, met...avant garde

Almost two years ago, Tim Walker (who I'm quickly learning to love) shot a group of people

[People: Karen Elson, Helena Bonham Carter, Tim Burton, Lightspeed Champion, Jamie Bell, Gareth Pugh, Imelda Staunton, Georgia Jagger, Sophie Drake, Jamie Campbell Bower, Peter Jensen, & Alice Gibb]

for British Vogue.

Inspiration? Roald Dahl. I don't know why they didn't do it sooner.

Overall, I quite enjoy the photos--I think they capture Dahl's slight insanity well. However, I must say, I wish they hadn't used Tim Burton.

Or that swan head. I think I may have nightmares about that.

m.

All images courtesy of http://community.livejournal.com/foto_decadent/1892394.html, and Vogue, and Tim Walker too, I suppose.